The volume of credit facilities provided by banks operating in the local market to their clients during the period from July to September this year increased by EGP 28.2bn, reaching EGP 1.65tn, according to the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE).

Credit facilities are loans provided by banks to their clients alongside documentary credits and letter of guarantees that were opened to cover import operations.

The total facilities directed to the government reached EGP 457.89bn at the end of September, including about EGP 213.94bn in the local currency, and about EGP 243.94bn in foreign currency.

The total facilities directed to non-government bodies reached EGP 1.19tn, including about EGP 881.16bn in local currency and about EGP 318.78bn in foreign currency.

According to the CBE, the private business sector has obtained about 61.3% of the non-government credit facilities provided by banks to the various economic sectors until the end of September.

The CBE noted that the industry came at the top of the sectors most funded by banks, as it received alone about 34.3% of the total of these facilities, followed by the services sector which acquired about 28.8% of the facilities, then the trade sector by 10.5%.

As usual, the agricultural sector received the lowest share of credit facilities granted by banks, accounting for only 1.3% of such facilities until the end of September.

The CBE added that there are other sectors that were not mentioned in detail, topped by the household sector. They obtained about 25.1% of these facilities.

In the same context, the CBE revealed that the total loan portfolio of banks increased by EGP 25bn at the end of September to reach EGP 1.64tn, compared to EGP 1.621tn at the end of August.

The CBE pointed out that the loans provided to the public business sector in both local and foreign currencies, increased by over EGP 8bn at the end of September to EGP 457bn, compared to EGP 449bn in August.

Finally, the loans granted for the private sector increased by over EGP 16bn, recording a total of EGP 1.188tn at the end of September, compared to EGP 1.172tn in August.